We spent a great day in San Francisco visiting all the touristy places. It was a lot of fun, I had never been there as a tourist before. Thought I would post a few of the pictures we took....cause I can ;)

Thursday, December 27, 2007

On December 20th our little guy turned 1!!!! We cannot believe how fast time flies by. It has been absolutely wonderful being parents to this precious baby. Here are a few fun pictures from the big day :)

Our friends Katie and Jed passed through on their way home for Christmas, so we met up with them and Andrea & Matt for breakfast. It was great to see them for a little bit.

Enjoying his candy cane in the car. An occasional treat that he loves. He becomes the sticky-est, gooey-est, slobbery-est thing on earth, but I can't resist his cuteness. So sad he has to have bandages on his hands!

This is Kaden's new favorite toy. There are all sorts of moving parts, buttons to push, sounds, etc. He sits on it and dances when the music comes on. He has really good rythm too.....SO CUTE I can hardly stand it. (And that's cake in his nose)

So many new toys!

Look at our mess!

Since this year we were spending Christmas in California, we had a little Christmas with my family on Kaden's birthday (don't worry, we promised him that this would be the ONLY year we do the two together....from now on his birthday will be separate and very special ;). I am modeling the cute new hat and mittens that Matt got me. Love 'em babe!

MMM!!! Yummy cupcakes! He got so excited he tried to stuff the whole thing in his mouth at once....and it went EVERYWHERE. But, he was SO happy!

Just before Christmas my friends Heidi, Andrea, and I went cross country skiing by the lake. The trail is literally 1/2 a mile from our doorstep, and THIS is the beautiful view! We had so much fun. I love living in a place where I can find fun things to do outside all year long. Those around me are always glad when I am exercising and getting sunshine...it's the best mood lifter in the world!

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Poor little Kaden burned his hands on my flat iron. I feel so horrible! I don't even know how he managed to pull it off of the sink since I was standing right there! He has huge blisters on both hands and we have to keep him bandaged up. It was so hard to see my baby hurting. We have had quite the week!Kaden is taking steps here and there....it's so cute but I am not ready for him to walk! I feel like he is growing up too fast! I am sure that is what all mom's think. I have absolutely LOVED every stage so far, so I know that as he continues to grow and learn new things it will be a complete joy for me.

My baby turns 1 on Thursday...I can't believe it's already been a year! In a way it seems like he was born yesterday, but in a way it seems that he has been with us forever. I love him so much.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Throughout the past few years I have been very aware of angels in my life, of God helping me find my way, of a special comfort that I cannot explain. That same comfort has found me yet again, the past few days. The other day I posted about our unfortunate incident with our home. It has been quite a challenge for all of us. Matt has had a particularly hard time being "displaced" and feeling no control over his life. Two nights ago he was feeling sad and frustrated. He just wanted to go home. He does not always think rationally when he is upset. I was trying to get a fussy baby to sleep and wasn't aware of what Matt was doing. Suddenly I had a bad feeling and looked out to our driveway to find our car was gone. My heart immediately sunk and I had a feeling of dread. Matt has not driven for 2 1/2 years. He has little control over his right leg, poor vision, and slow reflexes. It was 10 at night, the roads are very icy, and the road from my parents house to our house is quite trecherous.

My Dad and I ran out the door to find him. I couldn't gather one thought, so many were running through my mind. I knew he was upset and wasn't sure he would even try to be safe. I could not imagine him making it anywhere safely. I was scared to death of what we might find. I just kept praying over and over that he would be okay. We were frantically searching for the car, not knowing where Matt could possibly be. We made it all the way to our house and found the car safely in the driveway. I ran inside and Matt was okay. He said it was So hard to drive with and without his brace. He had stopped to take it off (which requires taking off his pants and shoes), in the below zero weather. He had gone off the road once, into a snowbank. I talked to him calmly, helped him see things clearly, and we went back to my parent's house.

I cannot explain the relief we all felt at Matt's safety. Considering all circumstances, there is no way that he could have done that on his own. I know that he had help driving home safely. He needs to be safe, to be a dad and husband. He has a special purpose in this life, that I am certain of. He has angels watching over him, and I am so grateful for the blessings in our life. The song posted below is perfect for my feelings. This week has been really hard on all of us. I try to always be positive and count my blessings, but sometimes I feel sorry for myself and wonder why we have to deal with some of the hard things that come our way. I cannot feel this way for long without being overwhelmed with reminders of the comfort and blessings that have been literally SHOWERED upon us. There are angels among us.

"Angels Among Us" Alabama

I was walking home from school on a cold winter day.Took a shortcut through the woods, and I lost my way.It was getting late, and I was scared and alone.But then a kind old man took my hand and led me home.Mama couldnt see him, but he was standing there.And I knew in my heart, he was the answer to my prayers.

Oh I believe there are angels among us.Sent down to us from somewhere up above.They come to you and me in our darkest hours.To show us how to live, to teach us how to give.To guide us with a light of love.

When life held troubled times, and had me down on my knees.Theres always been someone there to come along and comfort me.A kind word from a stranger, to lend a helping hand.A phone call from a friend, just to say I understand.And aint it kind of funny that at the dark end of the road.Someone lights the way with just a single ray of hope.

Oh I believe there are angels among us.Sent down to us from somewhere up above.They come to me and you in our darkest hours.To show us how to live, to teach us how to give.To guide us with a light of love.

They wear so many faces, show up in the strangest places.To guide us with their mercy, in our time of need.To guide us with a light of love.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

This is not our official picture for our card....only the special ones can see that! Just kidding. But really, if you would like to receive a card (considering we can get them out on time) please email me your address. THANKS!

UHHH OHHHHHH.......Yesterday Kaden was being the little mischief maker that he is and was reaching for a large, three wick candle I had burning. I blew out the candle and set it on our gas log fireplace, out of his reach. I made a mental note to move it back as soon as it had cooled. Then, we got busy and ran out the door to run some errands and go to my dad's Christmas concert. When we got home we heard a beeping...yes, coming from inside of OUR house. I had no clue why the alarm would be going off, so I went to check it out. The house absolutely REAKED and was so smoky I couldn't breathe or see anything. I ran through the house opening doors and windows and starting fans. I was calling our kitty Isabel over and over and just knew she couldn't have survived. I didn't want to go looking for her, for fear of what I would find. I remembered her hiding place in the hole in our box spring mattress. I found her there, barely breathing and took her to our car. We stayed at my parents house last night, and this morning my mom took Isabel to the vet. I feel SO awful that I caused pain to a little animal. I hope that she is alright. I couldn't stand being in there for more than a minute at a time....so I know it had to have been awful for her.

So....now we have a layer of wax residue on all of our things, and a house that smells horrible. My dear mom and her friend are busy cleaning and scrubbing...it is going to be a LOT of work. I will get someone to watch Kaden tomorrow and head down to help. My Dad went down last night really late to get things squared away for us, since leaving the doors open would freeze our house, which could be an even bigger problem. It is such a mess, but we are so blessed. My dad says that the vapor from the wax SHOULD have combusted with the pilot in the water heater and exploded! Thankfully, there was so fire. I am always SO careful with candles, the stove, etc. but I guess sometimes I just have too much to think about, and something gets forgotten. Lesson learned......

Sunday, December 9, 2007

Today Matt and I bundled up and went for a leisurely 4-wheeler ride through the valley. It was SO pretty with the snow-covered trees. We had such a good time together.

Modeling our stylish headware

Getting ready for the ride

BRRRRRRR....it was pretty chilly, but SO beautiful. We had so much fun riding through the trees, by streams, and snow covered mountains.

We're super serious about this 4-wheeling business

We couldn't go over 25 or our faces would freeze off. Matt got to drive and I didn't even get scared this time since he wasn't able to fulfill his "need for speed". I like the slower, take in the scenery, type of riding anyway.

We went to a town Christmas party with music, good treats, and of course, Santa! Kaden almost always will go to anyone, so I handed him over to Santa without thinking a thing of it. Immediately he was SO SAD. So, I sat with him (that always works), but he still was so scared of Santa.

This really is quite pitiful. Too bad he wasn't looking at the camera...that would have been even more pitiful! He is still so cute though, don't you think?

Friday, December 7, 2007

We took Kaden to play in the fresh snow and he loved it! He liked the taste too! He was so happy crawling around and throwing the snow.....until his mitten fell off and he realized that snow is really cold!